Lost Souls
by Lady Inu20
Summary: This is my first time writing stories. I do own some tomb raider stuff. Just the games tho. This is a romantic story between Lara and Alister. Please enjoy. Thank You
1. Alister would be horrified

Lara pulled down another book from the shelves of the library in Croft Manor and flicked through it. She scanned the first few pages, and then tossed the book carelessly over her shoulder, muttering, "_No."_

She took up another book, opened it, flipped through it, scowled. _"No."_

She threw it away and then stepped back, looking up at the upper shelves. She stepped up to the bookshelves and climbed upwards, using the gaps where rejected books had once been for hand and foot holds. She reached the top shelf and let go with one hand to look over a few more books.

_"__No!"_

She slammed a fist into the shelves and let go of them. She landed hard on the floor, the impact jarring her legs, and tears formed in her eyes. She blinked them back - they had not come from the fall. She brushed at her eyes furiously. She was not going to just break down and cry like some little girl. Instead, she began to walk around the room once more, narrowing her eyes as she looked at each volume on the shelves. She grabbed a large leather backed book and looked through the pages before throwing it away.

_"Damn it!"_

_"Lara?"_

Lara spon around, one hand automatically going to her gun. Zip hovered in the doorway, clearly uneasy. Lara forced herself to take a deep breath and peeled her hand away from her gun.

_"What is it, Zip?"_

He stepped into the room, looking around at the discarded books lying in heaps on the floor. "Anaya rang, she wanted to ask if you were okay."

_"I'm fine, thank you," _Lara said, turning back to the shelves_. _She didn't care if she was being rude, she just wanted him to leave.

_"What are you looking for?"_

_"Nothing."_

Zip sighed behind her_. "Lara... you can't bring him back."_

She spon around, tearing her gun from its holster._"Get out. NOW!"_

Zip flinched, and then quickly headed for the door. As soon as he was gone, Lara let herself fall to her knees. This time she couldn't hold her tears back, and they spilled over her eyelashes and raced down her cheeks. She wanted to call him back and apologize, but if she did he would see her crying and she couldn't bear that. She looked around the library, at the mess she had made.

_Alister would be horrified..._

She rose to her feet and moved over to the desk. It had miraculously survived the fire, along with the papers inside it, and she had had it replaced in the rebuilt library. Now, she sat down at the leather chair and pulled open the top right drawer. Inside was a neat stack of papers and folders. She pulled out the first one and flipped it open. Alister's handwriting was scrawled across the page, amazingly untidy considering his personality. Lara ran her hand over the page, swallowing hard as a lump rose in her throat.

_According to Natla, Avalon and Helheim are the same place. Mjolnir is apparently needed to enter (widely known as Thor's hammer) which may be found on the Jay Mayan Islands? Note: tell Lara about this. Doubtful that Natla truly wants to help._

"_He knew even then..."_

She bit her lip as her thoughts pushed out through her lips. She traced the unruly handwriting with one finger. Alister Fletcher. He should have been known by the whole world for his intelligence.

_"I did try, Alister, I swear I did..."_

She felt a sob catching in her throat and quickly stuffed the folder back into the drawer and shut it. She rose to her feet and moved to the nearest shelf. She would start again, from the very beginning, and search every book they had. How he had managed to pull up information in the past so fast was unbelievable - this was taking her forever. Gritting her teeth, she reached for the nearest book.

_"No."_

_"No."_

_"No..."_

Lightning flashed like the spark of a broken wire, and thunder snarled in Lara's ear. She opened her eyes, and then slowly lifted her head from where it was pillowed on a book. She had fallen asleep... scowling, she rose to her feet and stretched, wincing as her joints ached. Her eyes began to sting with tiredness and she glanced at her watch. Four thirty. She had been here for hours and found nothing. Shaking her head, she moved out of the library and down into the great hall. She slumped down into an armchair and looked up at the portrait of her mother and father.

"_What would you do, father?"_ she murmured. "What would you say?"

His kind eyes stared blindly down at her. She felt tears forming in her eyes once more - yet another person she had lost. Shaking herself, she pushed herself up to her feet and walked over into the tech room. Neither Zip nor Winston were about. They must have retired to their rooms. She sat down in the desk chair and pulled herself towards the computer. She logged onto the net and stared at the search page. She could almsot hear Alister talking out loud to them as he scrolled down through the ancient myths they had spent their lives researching.

_"Sometimes you start at the end and work backwards. Things are never clear as you want them to be... you have to dig past the skin... Think about what they believed..."_

And they had started with Norse mythology... Lara tapped a search in and scrolled down the websites that came up. She flicked through them until something caught her eye.

_In Norse mythology, Gullveig is a mysterious figure who appears solely in the Poetic Edda poem Voluspá in association with the Esir-Vanir War. In the poem, Gullveig is stated to have been burned three times in Odin's hall, yet to have been three times reborn._

Odin? She recognized that name. She dived deeper into it, her grief and despair beginning to melt away as she lost herself in the task. Soon she had some information on Odin himself staring her in the face.

_Odin is considered the cheif god in Norse paganism. In some cases, his name is translated to mean fury, excitation, mind or poetry. His role, like many of the Norse gods, is complex. He is associated with wisdom, war, battle, magic, poetry, prophecy, victory and... death._

That last word burned itself in her mind, screaming out hope. That tiny little 'what if' nagging at her. This was a long shot, she knew that, and it was probably a wild goose chase. But maybe, just maybe...

Maybe was enough for her.

She rose to her feet and ran to Zip's room. She pushed open the door without knocking and ran over to his bed, shaking his arm. He startled awake, staring around in confusion.

_"Lara? What time is it... what?"_

_"I need you to organize a flight for me, right now."_

_"Now? Lara... jesus, its nearly five in the morning! What the hell are you doing up?"_

_"Just please, Zip? I need it quickly."_

Groaning, Zip sat up and rubbed at his face. _"What is this?"_

She hesitated. If she told him the real reason, he would either show her how it wouldn't be possible or not let her go. So she lied. "I need some time. I think there are some ruins in the area and I would love to just get away and... and explore. Just for a bit."

His face cleared_. __"Oh, right,"_ he said, nodding. _"Sure. I'll sort it out now."_

She regretted lying, but she had to do this alone. She had to make it... for Alister


	2. Hall of Odin

**ch. 2**

Lara braked and brought the motorbike to a halt, silencing its rumbling engine. A flat rock wall rose up before out of the mountains, forming a dead end on her path. It was especially straight, as if it had been sculpted. She climbed off the bike and made her way over to the wall, running her hands over it. It was almost entirely covered in ivy. She walked carefully along it, letting her hands trail through the leaves. As she neared the left end, her fingers brushed cool metal. Eagerly she stripped the ivy away and closed a fist over the smooth handle. She pulled the lever down hard, and the sound of thunder bellowed from the wall. Ivy pulled apart in the centre of it as two thick metal doors grated open. Lara strode forwards, one hand cautiously going to her gun. Just in case...

The corridor she stepped into was falling apart - tiles on the floor had come loose and cracked and the walls were crumbling. She walked quickly, keeping her hand on her gun. She felt much better now that she was actually acting on a decision, like when she had rushed straight on with the search after Alister's murder. When she was tomb raiding, she didn't have to think. Or at least not in the way that hurt. But after she had returned to Croft Manor, everything had come rushing back. His last words haunted her day and night, no matter what she did.

_"I feel... bloody awful... I'll see... see you... see you in A-Avalon..."_

Lara quickly pushed the memories away and concentrated on the corridor before the tears could return. She followed a turn to the left, then right, and then left again. Abruptly the corridor turned another corridor and opened up into a huge room. Blue light shimmered on a strip on each wall, casting a ghostly sheen over the room. On the other side there was a huge statue of a serpent, like the previous Norse temples, rose out of a glittering pool of water that took up nearly the whole room. Runes were inscribed over the walls. Lara examined those nearest to her.

_"Alright, so this is definately the Hall of Odin. It says here that Odin weilded a wand of some kind... no, a staff. A staff of great power." __She frowned. __"So the staff... maybe that is what I need."_

She stepped away from the wall and looked around the room once more. A glimmer of gold caught her eye and she looked up to see a long golden stick in the Serpent's jaws. Was that the staff? Or just another decoration? It was worth a shot. She scooped up a rock from her feet and threw it into the pool - encounters with toxic water in the past had made her cautious. The rock sank to the bottom safely. Convinced, Lara took a running jump and dived in.

She could tell at once that something was wrong. The water tasted sour and old, clinging to her like smoke. She choked on its putrid taste and clawed her way up to the surface. After a few deep breaths the nausea that had risen up in her slowly died away. Taking a deep breath, she plunged back downwards and squinted through the water at the bottom of the pool.

Far below her, a grey, decaying skull stared back with empty eyesockets, flesh still clinging to its rounded dome. Looking around, Lara took in several other skulls. They un-nerved her in a way skeletons usually did not. There was something about this place that was just... eerie. Quickly, she swam up and struck out for the Serpent's arched neck. She reached it and felt along the rock scales until her fingers found a crack. She dug her hands into it and then pulled herself upwards, steadying one foot on a scale. Her boot slipped and she tightened her grip on the crack. The rock was surprisingly slimy. She looked up, searching for another handhold. She spotted a scale which stuck out slightly more than the others, and she reached for it. She lifted a foot and inched it into the scale beside her hand, and then pushed upwards once more.

The serpent was a good ten meters high, and by the time she reached the top her arms were trembling from the effort of dragging herself from one tiny handhold to the next. She reached upwards to grab the curved fangs of the serpent and pushed off with her feet, launching herself upwards and into its huge mouth. She was now crouching on the rolling stone tongue behind the golden staff. She curled her hand around its smooth metal, which instantly seemed to warm beneath her palm. She clenched a fist tightly around it and looked around warily. There was bound to be some sort of booby trap. But she could see no swords flying towards her, no poisoned arrows, nothing. She hesitated. Then in one sharp movement she pulled the staff towards her.

Instantly the rock above her rumbled and trembled. Instantly she realized what was about to happen: the staff had been holding the serpent's upper jaw open. Without it, its head would fall and the fangs would rip through her. Lara didn't think - she threw herself forwards, the staff clutched tightly in one hand, and dived for the water. She slammed into it and pulled up to the surface, twisting around to look up at the serpent. The whole statue was shaking wildly now. With the shift of wieght it was beginning to fall. Lara struck out for the other side of the room, swimming as hard as she could. The staff hampered her, but she wasn't about to let it go now. She reached the other side of the pool and swung herself up onto it just as the serpent statue tumbled over, falling rock sending great arcs of silver water into the air.

Lara looked down at the pool, now strewn with rubble, the skulls hidden from sight. Then she turned her gaze to the staff, spinning it in her hands. It appeared to be made of pure gold, and a beautiful clear diamond was set into the top of it. More runes were inscribed on the handle. Lara narrowed her eyes.

_"It says... Odin weilded the staff and it flashed with fire and sky-light... does it mean lightning? Anyway... he pressed it to the sacred dais and from it he could control everything, day and night, love and hate, north and south and... and life and death." She frowned. "The dais... the dais in Nepal! Is that how he used it?"_

Lara turned, scanning the room once more with her eyes, but it offered up no more answers. Slowly, she turned and made her way out of the temple. She climbed onto her bike and turned on her com.

_"Zip? Are you there?"_

_"Lara, hey. Any luck in your new temple?"_

_"Yes, it was very interesting_," Lara replied, looking down at the staff in her hands._ "Zip, I have to go back to Nepal."_

_"Nepal? Why? What's going on?"_

_Lara swallowed hard_. He was clearly suspicious about what she was doing.

_"I just want to look at the dais one more time. I want to say goodbye."_

Zip paused. Then,_ "Okay. But don't stay there too long, please, Lara. Winston's getting really worried about you."_

_"I will. After this last trip I'll come right home, alright?"_

_"Okay. I'll make the arangements."_

The dais at Nepal was just as she remembered it.

She stepped forwards, her breath misting in front of her. She hefted the staff in both hands, squinting down at the writing for the millionth time. There was no clue as to what she had to do, but she knew she had to put it against the dais. She span it around and then stepped up to the dais, biting her lip.

_"Alright, then. Lets do this."_

She put the crystal against the gap where Excaliber usually slipped in. Instantly, sparks flew from the rock. She pulled back, surprised, and then hopefully placed it back again. Sparks burst out from the rock once more, and then the circular rock rose up from the floor in front of her, crackling this time with silver light instead of green. Lara held the staff steady as it began to tremble.

_What do I do? I don't know what to do with it..._

The staff jerked suddenly and the diamond began to flash with different colours - red, blue, green, gold, purple, violet, orange... she squinted against the glare. The staff shook wildly in her hands, almost tearing free. She panicked. What was she supposed to do? Usually it was some sort of weapon she was using... she concentrated on the diamond, pressing her lips together.

_Bring him back to me... bring Alister back..._

All at once the diamond turned scarlet and the staff pulled forwards. Lara stumbled, struggling to keep control of it as it strained towards the flashing lights. She was going to be dragged through...

**_"No! Alister!" __she called out.__ "Alister!"_**


	3. Painful Memories

Ch. 3

Zip stared blindly at his computer screen. He felt like he should be doing something - anything - and yet he had already checked that Lara's flight had taken off and landed four times. Nothing had changed in the last thirty seconds. Instead of casually surfing the net or working on some new gadjet as he usually did, he found himself just sitting there, thinking.

Thinking, mostly, of Alister.

True, he wanted Lara to put the man out of her mind, and to be honest he wanted the same for himself. But somehow, all he could see now was Lara laying his friend down on the ground, the slow, sad shake of Winston's head. Alister could almost have been sleeping, if not for the blood shining slightly in the firelight from the mansion, and the lines of agony which were still etched on his face. He hadn't seen Alister again, but he hoped that some undertaker somewhere had made his face slightly more peaceful. To spend the rest of eternity with that pained expression, even in death, just didn't seem right for Alister.

Zip leant back in his chair and looked through the glass wall of the tech room. He remembered watching Lara lead Alister in that day, the day they had all met. Lara had been looking for a more experience researcher for some time, and Alister had called asking if he could trouble her to fund some interest he had in some kind of temple. She had eagerly accepted, and soon enough he was walking in through the doors, holding a small suitcase and dressed in a suit. That was what had got Zip - the suit. Who wore a suit when moving into their new home? But then he had realized that Alister _always _wore smart trousers and a jacket. He was always so innocent and geeky that Zip practically burst out laughing whenever he came into the room. At first Alister had been offended, but now - towards the end, he meant - he hadn't seemed to mind.

_I should never have let him go..._

They had all been waiting in the tomb room for Lara to return, but then upstairs they had heard someone coming in. So they had gone upstairs, and found the Doppleganger getting into the vault. Thinking it was Lara, Zip had moved forwards, calling her name. Instantly she had turned and put a bullet in his leg. Zip had managed to grab the gun Lara had left on the table and fired wildly at the Doppleganger but she had simply leapt out of the way and then advanced on him and Winston.

That was when Alister had interferred.

Idiot.

He had picked up a metal chair in the corner and thrown it at the Doppleganger, missing of course, but grabbing her attention. Zip could still hear his voice yelling.

**_"Hey, you... well, I don't know what you are, but that's quite unimportant... uh, leave them, um, please. No, not please, leave them alone!"_**

She had made a dive for him, and he had miraculously thrown himself out of the way.

**_"Run! I'll draw her off!"_**

And then he ran for his life with the, Doppleganger on his heels. Zip knew he should have followed, but the house was on fire and his leg was searing... he had been selfish and stupid. And he should have known, as Alister had, that the real Lara would never hurt them. Instead he had distracted her from helping him by trying to kill her when she finally found them again.

Sighing, Zip reached out and clicked on the automatic calling system on his desktop. The computer began to dial Lara's number, but it went straight to voicemail. He hung up. He wanted to talk to her, just to make sure that she was okay. He shouldn't have let her go off alone either, not in the state she was in at the moment.

He put his head in his hands and kneaded his forehead.

_"God, Lara, hope you're okay,"_ he muttered.


	4. Alister!

**Ch.4**

Lara dug her heels into the ground as Odin's staff pulled her towards the flashing silver and red lights, and god-knows-whatever was now on the other side. A sudden icy wind blew over her, as if snow had suddenly coated her limbs, and screams rang in her ears. She flinched backwards, almost releasing the staff, but managed to keep her grip. The screams grew louder as she was pulled closer. Was this... death? Was that what she was hearing? But what kind of death would this be? A sudden fear gripped her, comanding and roaring.

**_Let go. Just bloody let go! You tried, you did your best. There's nothing else you can do. JUST - LET - GO!_**

_But Alister..._

_**"Alister!" **_she cried out, fustration mingling with terror in her voice. _**"Alister, please!"**_

**_"Lara!"_**

For a moment she thought that she was imagining the voice. That her own hope was playing tricks on her. But then it came again, louder this time, clearer.

**_"Lara!"_**

"Alister?" she gasped. "Where... where are you?"

Her feet slipped and she let out a short shriek, scrambling backwards has best she could without letting go. To let go now was to lose her conection with Alister... if it was really him...

**"Alister, talk to me!"**

She was almost pleading.

**_"What... happening? I... stand... you... this? Lara!"_**

She was only getting snippets of what he was saying. She squinted against the glare of the lights, and then suddenly he was there. On the other side of them, flickering between transparent and solid, she could barely even make him out, but he seemed to be wearing the same clothes as he had been the night it had all happened. His shirt was coated with blood and stuck to his side, glistening wetly. But his eyes shone as he stared out at her, so close and yet looking so far away.

**_"Lara... stop!"_**

"_What?"_ she called back.

**_"You have to stop!"_**he screamed.

**_"What? No! Come out, come here!"_**

**_"I can't, I don't know how! Lara, its going to destroy you!"_**

And she knew it too. She could already feel it tearing at her like a tornado, sucking at her very soul. The screeching wind ripped her very breath away. But she couldn't bear to stop now, not when she was so close.

**"_Alister!"_** she cried, desperately searching her brains. "Just jump! Just run at me as hard as you can."

His face creased with concentration, and then he helplessly shook his head. Carefully, Lara pulled one hand away from the staff and thrust it out towards the lights. The staff began to inch out of her grasp.

**_"Take my hand! Quickly, there's no time!"_**

He reached towards her. The flashing, pulsating lights blinded her, the wind snatched and screamed, the very earth seemed to tremble beneath her. She shut her eyes, still snatching desperately at Alister's shimmering form.

They weren't going to make it. She could feel the staff slipping from her hands. She could barely even grip it with her fingertips. She felt tears spilling over her eyelashes, blown sideways by the wind.

She had failed once again.

Then several things happened at once. First of all, the staff ripped from her hand. Secondly, the lights seemed to explode with colour and heat, a blast that sent her flying backwards and hitting the ground hard a few meters away. And, the thing that made her heart stop... she felt freezing fingers curl around her own.

Lara came to with a gasp as water lapped against her face and jerked upright. A sharp sting in her knee told her that she had cut it when she had fallen, along with one shoulder aching from the impact. She looked down. The runes on the floor around the dais were overflowing with the liquid, but she couldn't see where it was coming from. It seemed to be moving towards the place where the circle of rock within which the lights had pulsated and flashed had collapsed. It tasted like the decay-filled water in Odin's halls. Lara spat it out quickly, as if she thought it would contaminate her. Dust was still rising slowly from the fall of the circle - she must have been unconscious only for a few seconds, although it felt like much longer. She had broken the dais once again, failing in her task. The circle lay shattered on the ground. Odin's staff was nowhere to be seen. She sat motionless in the darkness. It was indeed so dim that she could barely see the shape of the dais and the colums around it.

And what was more, whoever had caught hold of her hand at that last moment before everything exploded... was gone.

She balled her hand into a fist, swallowing hard. Had it been Alister's touch she had felt? Or just some other soul straining to get through? How could she be sure that what she had been seeing was even real, that it wasn't just some product of her own desperate, greiving imagination? Maybe she had just been kidding herself this whole time. Maybe she was going as insane as those she had fought against to get this far in the first place.

_Oh, Alister... I'm so, so sorry..._

She felt tears forming in her eyes once more and forced back a sob.

Almost as if on cue, a choking gasp broke the silence. Lara flinched in shock, and then scrambled to her knees. Her knee stung in protest but she ignored it. She fumbled with trembling fingers for the light on her shoulder. Of all times to suddenly forget where the button was... but she could hear it now; the shift of something on rock not far away from her; the short, ragged breathing; the supressed moans. Something was in the room with her, and for once that thought did not set her nerves on edge.

_What if..._

Her hand finally located the button on top of her light and she stopped for a moment. If it wasn't him... she shouldn't get her hopes up. Just in case... _just do it. _But her hand would not move. She couldn't bear to lose him again, not again... she had to be sure...

"Alister?"

Her voice sounded so small and scared in the darkness that she almost kicked herself. In response, the harsh breathing near her broke off. Then another voice replied, just as hesitant as she was.

_"L-Lara?"_

Lara's stomach did a huge jerk and she scrambled to press the button. Light flooded out over the dark room, blinding her for a second. She squinted desperately through it. Only about two meters away, Alister rolled onto his back and looked up at her, fear etched over his face. Relief rushed into his gaze as he looked at her, and for a few moments all she could do was stare back.

**_Oh god, he's alive... I did it... he's ALIVE!_**

But then, her initial joy vanished. Because something was very, very wrong. Alister looked as if he should still be dead: his face was pale and thin, his whole body shuddered with every gasping, tiny breath he drew and his arms were wrapped tightly around his side. As she watched, blood began to trickle from the corner of his mouth. Horrified, Lara launched herself forwards to his side and grabbed his arm. Just being able to touch him again sent a wave of giddy happiness over her, but it quickly evaporated. The gunshot wound that had stolen his life was still there, she could see the blood leaking out of him onto the stone floor around them. He had shut his eyes again, his face taught with pain.

_"Alister... oh god, what... why..."_

But then she understood. Of course Odin's staff had the power to restore life, but it could not repair broken bodies. Despite being ressurected three times, the mysterious legend had still died, hadn't he? Why hadn't she done more research, made certain of what would happen? The bullet that had torn through Alister's flesh was gone... but the wound it had left behind was as real and terrible as the moment he had recieved it.

If she didn't do something - anything_ - _then she was going to lose him again.

Alister chose this moment to open his eyes and look up at her once more. There was a strange kind of innocent life that shone within him that made her want to cry.

_"Lara,"_ he forced out, his voice shaking_. __"Are... are you... o-okay?"_

She let out a short laugh. "Am Iokay? Alister, how can you ask me if I'm okay when you're lying here bleeding?"

He chuckled and then winced. _"St-stupid... question..."_

Lara pulled off her rucksack and began to paw through it for her emergency first aid kit. There was no way she could help him in any dramatic way, but she could stem the bleeding a little. Maybe that would keep him alive long enough for her to contact Zip and get help. She pulled out bandages, antiseptic... she had no idea how to stitch a wound, and she wasn't about to cause him that amount of pain. She just couldn't do it.

That thought scared her a little. A month ago, there was nothing she wasn't prepared to do. She would have leapt from a burning building without a second thought. But now... now things were different.

Alister struggled to supress a scream of pain as Lara cleaned out his wound with antiseptic and then applied as much pressure as she could. She had a terrible flashback to the night he had died - things were going down in exactly the same way.

"_I'm sorry, I'm so sorry,"__ she gabbled out__. "I'll get it over with as quickly as possibly, I promise."_

He tried to reply, but ended up moaning in agony instead. Lara's heart wrenched in her chest, and she felt tears stinging behind her eyes. This was causing him more pain than his death ever had. Lara let go with one hand and placed it against the side of his face, forgetting about being embarressed or hesitant in the fear that swallowed up everything else.

_"Alister? Alister, please stay with me."_

_"I... 'kay..."_ he breathed.

The bleeding was beginning to slow. The wound wasn't as big all the blood had made it appear to be. As carefully as she could, she taped some gauze over the wound and then reached for the bandages.

_"__Alister, I need you to sit up,"_ she said.

His forehead creased as he screwed his eyes shut. _"Lara... I-I... can't..."_

_"Yes, you can."_ She was begging more than assuring him. She gently pulled him into a sitting position and leant him back against the nearest of the pillars around the dias. He let out a shout of pain, and she cringed.

_"Sorry, I'm sorry!"_

_"S'f-f-fine,"_ he gasped.

She wrapped the bandages around his midsection as quickly as she could before pinning them in place and then sitting back. Alister had gone quiet, his eyes shut. Panicking, Lara took him by the shoulders.

_"Alister!"_

His eyes flickered open and blearily focused on her. Relief leapt through her and she relaxed, sitting down on the floor beside him. She took his hand, needing to reassure herself that he was still there.

_"Does it hurt badly?"_ she asked softly.

_"__I'll live,"_ he muttered. _"Probably."_

He tried to smile but it turned into a grimace. _"Lara... did you do this?"_

She didn't trust herself to answer for a few moments. She had never admitted relying on anyone in her whole life, apart from maybe her father when she was little. But how could she deny what she felt now, when it must be so obvious?

She took a deep breath.

_"Yes, I did. After you... after it happened, I found that I was thinking about you with new... new feelings. I just couldn't bear to lose you. Without you everything just seemed to stop, I couldn't focus. I..."_

She glanced up at him, and met his eyes. He was watching her silently. She swallowed hard.

_"I'm sorry. I was so selfish. But I just... I..."_

Tears were brimming in her eyes. She wiped at them furiously, but they broke free and trailed down her cheeks. She turned her face away. She had yanked him back into the world, caused him the most pain he had probably ever felt, and now was crying in front of him. She felt so stupid,so pathetic...

Alister's hand reached out and cupped her face, turning it so that she was facing him again. He wiped her tears away with his thumb.

_"I was... so scared. I thought you... were going to get pulled in too."_ He shut his eyes for a few seconds, and then looked at her again. _"You... saved my life... th-thank you..."_

Lara squeezed his hand. She would search for any painkillers she might have packed by chance in her bag in a moment - for now she just wanted to be with him. Alister clenched his jaw, blinking hard, and then nodded.

_"H-How?"_

_"I found Odin's staff."_

His eyebrows shot upwards. _"C-Can I s-see?"_

She turned, but it wasn't anywhere around the dais. In face, it was nowhere. It must have been sucked through into the lights. "Its gone. I'm sorry..."

_"W-what did it look like?"_

"It had this diamond set into the top. It changed colours." She wished she could think of better words to describe it to him, but he smiled anyway.

_"The magic... of Odin..."_

He seemed to be finding it hard to breathe. Lara reached for her bag, searching for anything that might help. She found a small packet of low-key painkillers - better than nothing. She took up her flask and put it into Alister's hand. He finched slightly in surprise.

_"Can you swallow these? They'll help with the pain."_

He nodded, squinting down at the pills she handed him. She reached for her bag once more, but could not find her mobile. Frowning, she looked around. She caught sight of it across the room, lying on the floor. Sighing, she rose to her feet and walked over to it. As she had feared, the screen was smashed and the back shattered. It would be of no use to her. She returned to Alister and searched through her bag for her second emergency mobile. But, when she turned it on, she had no signal. They would have to walk until they found one.

_"__Bad news?"_

She looked up at Alister, who was watching her, and nodded._ "I'm afraid so. We're going to have to get out of this place on our own."_


	5. What was it like? Dying

**Ch. 5**

Lara shivered as the icy Nepal winds rushed over her. She had forced Alister to accept her spare jacket, knowing that it would do very little to help him, and her own jacket was far too thin to do herself any good. She climbed up onto a nearby rock and pulled her mobile from her pocket, checking the signal once more. Still nothing. Swearing under her breath, she shoved it back into her pocket and looked around. They had made it out of the temple, and were now trekking over the freezing wastelands strewn with ruins. They had already passed part of the wing of the plane she had crashed in so long ago, and that gave her a little hope. She knew that when they came across the main body of the plane, they would have a good chance of finding a signal. She had been able to contact Croft Manor easily enough from that spot in the past. She estimated that they were about an hour and a half's walk to the plane.

She glanced over her shoulder, searching for Alister. She caught sight of him moving slowly towards her a little way away. He still had one arm wrapped around his midsection, his face pinched in pain despite the painkillers she had given him. On their way out of the temple he had had to lean on her for support, pale and shaking. But once they neared the exit, he had pushed himself away from her and walked alone, despite the fact that he kept stumbling. Twice so far they had had to stop until the pain had resided enough for him to continue, but he didn't seem to want to accept her help anymore.

Maybe he thought he would appear weak.

Now, Lara flinched as he staggered and sank to his knees in the snow, his shoulders trembling as he struggled to draw breath. She slid down off the rock and ran back towards him, taking him by his uninjured shoulder.

_"Didn't... see... the hole,"_ he gasped through clenched teeth.

Lara's heart twisted and she resisted the urge to hug him. Instead, she rubbed his arm, trying to get as much warmth back into his body as possible. If she wasn't careful, he would start going into shock.

_"You want to rest?"_

He shook his head, pressing his lips together, and then with a huge effot pushed himself up to his feet. Lara hovered anxiously by his side. He swayed and, throwing caution to the winds, Lara pulled his uninjured arm over her shoulders. He weakly tried to pull away.

_"__Don't worry... m'fine..."_

"Of course you are. Just humor me."

He groaned, but then abruptly sagged against her. _"How much further?"_

He sounded almost like a child, exhaustion lingering in the back of his voice. Lara swallowed hard.

"Not far now," she lied. "We'll find a signal soon."

They moved on in silence for a few moments. Lara was horribly aware that Alister seemed to be leaning on her more and more as they went on, as if his strength was quickly being stripped away by the cold. But he couldn't die now, he couldn't. She'd just got him back. It wouldn't be _fair. _If he does, she thought determinedly, I'll just find the staff and bring him back again. I don't care how long it takes.

_"L-Lara?"_

_"Yes?"_

_"C-Can I ask... you something?"_

_"Of course. What is it?"_

He took a few deep breaths before speaking again_. "__W-Will you... use the staff... to bring back... your parents?"_

Lara thought for a moment. _"No. If people come back in the state they were when they died, like you did, then... it would be too horrible. My father was shot in the head. And my mother... well, lets just say she is no longer in any state to speak, let alone live again." She bit her lip. "Alister, I'm so, so sorry... I didn't know you'd come back like this."_

_"S-Said before... doesn't matter."_

She managed a small smile. A question was nagging at her own mind, although she didn't feel as if she should ask it so soon. But before she could stop herself, it was leaping from her lips.

_"What was it like? Dying, I mean?"_

Alister remained silent. For a moment Lara thought that she had indeed gone too far and that he wouldn't answer, but then he spoke.

_"It was... cold. And dark. But... I-I didn't go all... all the way."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"It was like... I could still feel life... really close... but then there was death... on my other side... and I was st-stuck inbetween."_

_"Maybe something knew you weren't staying long."_

_"Maybe. O-or I wasn't... b-brave enough to f-finish leaving."_

She remembered the screams she had heard when she was using the staff. "Were there others with you?"

_"D-Don't know. S-Sometimes... felt like it... don't know."_

Lara felt a shudder roll through him and suppressed a wince. She had to stay strong for him now. They were going to make it. She opened her mouth to say something encouraging, and then shut it again.

How could she lie to him when she couldn't even lie to herself?


	6. worried

Ch. 6

"The mobile you are calling cannot be reached. Please try again later."

Zip hung up and dialed Lara's mobile again. The smooth female voice came on again.

"The mobile you are calling cannot-"

**"**_**Yes it can!"**_ he burst out, hanging up again. "_**It's a satellite phone, I should be able to reach her anywhere..."**_

He sat back in his chair, nervously drumming his fingers on the desk. He hadn't heard from Lara in hours, and he was beginning to worry. He couldn't contact her at all, not through text or mobile or PDA. He could not even find her mobile signal on his satellite map. What the hell had happened? Was she hurt?

He wanted to send someone out to search for her, but as a rule of her's he wasn't allowed to until she had been missing for forty-eight hours. He knew he should have sent someone with her, someone who would keep her on the tracks. She had been so confused and emotional lately. Anything could have happened.

He looked up as Winston appeared in the doorway of the tech room.

_"Coffee?"_

_"No thanks,"_ he muttered. He dialed again, and the hung up with a groan of fustration as the same thing happened. _"I can't get through to Lara."_

_**"Maybe she has lost her mobile."**_

_**"No."**_

_**"She may have broken it. Or maybe there is no signal where she is now."**_

_**"There should always be a signal, its satellite,"**_ Zip growled. He ran a hand through his dreadlocks.

_"Don't worry about her, sir. Miss Croft is a very capable woman."_

_"Yeah,"_ Zip muttered.

He knew that. He knew that once she set her mind on something, it was impossible to stop her.

So why did he have such a bad feeling that something was wrong?


	7. Home coming

ch.7

Lara shut her eyes, suppressing a shudder as snow blew into her face. The thick, heavy flakes had begun to fall about fiffteen minutes ago, and was dragging her down. They were beginning to fall faster now, a swirling blanket of white that almost blocked out her vision. She could barely see three metres in front of her. Alister hung from her shoulder, nearly slipping away, and she had her hand fisted in the back of his jacket in an attempt to keep hold of him. She had lost track of the time by now. All she knew was that they were moving uphill, and up was good. But her legs were beginning to shake, and she didn't know how much further she could go.

Alister stumbled slightly, and Lara almost tumbled over with him. She dug her heels into the snow and managed to keep her balance, steadying herself. She squinted up through the snow and saw nothing but white. Letting out a heavy sigh, she squeezed Alister's hand tightly.

_"Alister? I think we should rest for a moment. I need a break."_

Alister didn't reply. She waited, but all she heard were his shallow, rasping breaths.

_"Alister? Alister?"_

She jostled him a little, and he let out a low moan.

_"Whu... what?"_

Lara's stomach flipped at his slurred, weak tone and she gently lowered him onto the snowy ground. She held him in a sitting position as she crouched down in front of him, her knees aching from the long walk.

"Alister? Can you hear me?"

His eyelids drooped and he swayed beneath her hand. Lara tightened her grip on him, and he blearily met her gaze, although his eyes seemed to stare straight through her. She rubbed his arms, horribly aware of how cold he was.

"How do you feel? How bad is the pain?"

He blinked slowly. His mouth opened slightly, but no sound came out. Lara felt tears threatening and swallowed hard, shutting her eyes for a second to gather herself.

_"Alister, you have to stay awake, okay? Keep listening to me."_

His eyes began to close once more, and she shook him slightly. Her actions made almost no difference. She dug in her pocket for her mobile and checked the signal. Nothing, _nothing... _

_**"For god's sake!"**_ she hissed. _**"Give me something, please!"**_

She held it up and out, but got nothing. Why did everything have to go wrong for her, just when things appeared to be looking up? Why, why could she never have anything good for any length of time? Why was her life so full of crap? She looked back at Alister, struggling to hold back her tears again. She was going to watch him die. Maybe afterwards, when everything was over, she would just throw herself off a cliff and be done with it all...

Then, a red bar appeared on her mobile scream.

Lara froze, her eyes fixed on it. Hope flared up in her chest. The bar flickered for a few moments and then vanished. But it had been there, and that meant that somewhere close by was an area she could get a signal from. She still had a chance. She hesitated, glancing back at Alister. His eyes had glazed over, a thin sheen of sweat appearing on his forehead despite the freezing cold. Taking him with her would take up too much time, and she didn't know how much longer they had left. But leaving him alone... if he fell unconscious now, there might be no waking him up. But she had no damn time...

_"Alister, stay awake,"__ she said__. "I'll be right back, I promise. Just stay awake for me."_

She rose to her feet and pushed herself into a run. Her feet slipped in the snow, but she forced herself to continue. She reached a small rocky out crop and looked down at the mobile again. The red bar had reappeared. It wasn't enough to call for help, but it was enough to send a second surge of hope through her. Lara clenched her fist around the mobile and began to move again, the hill becoming so steep that she almost had to move on her hands and knees. A blast of freezing air hit her in the face as she reached another group of rocks, the hill abruptly vanishing, and then the snow died slightly. Lara pushed back her hair and looked down, breathing heavily.

Far below her, the skeleton wreckage of a plane lay stretched out on the ground.

Lara let out a heavy sigh of relief and lifted the mobile before her. Four green bars flashed in front of her on the screen. A grin broke out across her face.

_**"Yes. **__**Yes!"**_

She hurriedly dialed a number and pressed the mobile to her ear.

_"Hold on, Alister. Help's on its way."_


	8. Morning

Ch.8

Zip ran shaking hands through his hair, forcing himself to take a deep breath. He pushed his hands into his pockets, then pulled them out again and clasped them together in front of him, rocking slightly on his armchair. He pulled out his mobile, checking to see if there were any new messages, any missed calls. There was nothing, just like there had been nothing one minute ago. He flinched as a door behind him opened and leapt to his feet. Winston appeared, nodded to him, and walked slowly up the stairs with his arms laden with fresh sheets. Zip let out a groan of exasperation and strode towards the front doors. He began to pace back and forth in front of them, his hands rigid fists.

**Why had no one called him yet?**

What kind of state was Lara going to be in after going through all this? He knew she was strong, but what had happened to Alister had clearly affected her. He didn't even know if he believed the bizarre story she had told him only a few hours ago. He wanted to call someone, anyone, but he didn't want to distract them from anything important.

**But why the ****hell ****hadn't anyone called? What was taking so damn long?**

He turned towards the kitchen, rubbing his shaking hands together. He needed some form of coffee, or maybe tea... some kind of hot liquid. Maybe if he just gave himself something to do time might pass more quickly. He was halfway across the hall when his mobile rang. He shrieked and started before scrabbling for it wildly. It slipped through his fingers and hit the floor. Zip dived after it and flicked it open.

_**"Yes? What? Who is it? What's wrong?"**_

He listened, and then scrambled to his feet.

_**"Okay, coming. Yeah, just land! Hurry!"**_

He dropped his mobile back into his pocket before turning and sprinting halfway up the stairs.

_**"Winston! Its here!"**_

He waited but there was no reply.

_**"Winston! Oh, Winston!"**_

_"Yes, sir?"_ The butler appeared on the left hand stairs.

_**"Its here!" **_Zip repeated_**. "Here now!"**_

_"What do you wish me to do?"_

Zip blinked. _**"I... It's here, okay?"**_

He turned and ran back down the stairs towards the door. He pulled it open and came face to face with dark brown eyes. He stared at her for a moment, and then exploded.

_**"Where the **__**hell **__**were you? I was sitting here worrying my ass off, no call, no text, no word that you were alright! I probably lost thirty years off my life just now!"**_

Lara managed a weary smile and moved slowly past him. Zip turned to watch as she limped over to the armchair he had recently vacated and slumped down into it, closing her eyes. Zip spread his arms slightly.

_**"What, nothing? Not even a 'sorry, Zip, how kind of you to think of me?'"**_

_"Sir?"_

Zip turned and froze. The pilot of the helicopter he had sent to pick up Lara glanced from her to Zip.

_"What should I do with...?"_

_"I... I got him,"_ Zip choked out.

He moved shakily forwards and pulled Alister's arm over his shoulder, shouldering his friend's weight. Alister winced and Zip bit his lip.

"_Sorry, man, sorry_." He glanced at the pilot. _"Thanks for all your help, you can leave."_

The pilot nodded and retreated from the room. Zip slowly made his way over to the sofa beside the fireplace and carefully lowered Alister onto it. As he did so, Alister's eyes opened and he met Zip's gaze. He smiled.

_"Hey, Zip."_

_"Holy shit, man,"_ Zip mumbled, crouching down in front of him. _"What the... I don't... how?"_

Alister smiled tiredly. _"Maybe you should ask Lara that question."_

_"Are you... alive?"_

_"I think so."_

Zip let out a strangled sound halfway between a laugh and a yelp. He leant forwards, pulling Alister's bloodied shirt aside. _"You okay? How's your side? They said it was still there..."_

_"They fixed it up pretty well on the way here... doesn't hurt as much..."_

Zip rose to his feet and moved over to the stairs.

_**"Winston! Bring the first aid kit down!"**_

He heard a muffled reply. Satisfied, he turned and moved back over to Alister. He glanced at Lara, and was surprised to see she had fallen asleep in the chair. But then it wasn't the only out-of-character thing she had done in the last few days. Winston appeared on the stairs with the first aid kit in his hands.

_"Check him over, I'll get Lara," Zip said._

Alister looked up, as if about to protest, but then remained silent. For the first time, Zip wondered what had passed between the two of them in their time alone. For the first time, he wondered if Lara had been acting on more than just a desire to help a friend. Pushing the thoughts out of his mind, he moved over to Lara and nudged her arm. She groaned and turned her head away. Rolling his eyes, Zip scooped her up and moved towards the stairs carrying her, aware that Alister's eyes were fixed on his back.

Zip reached Lara's room and carefully put her down on her bed. He was about to move away and leave her to sleep when she suddenly rolled over, one hand fisting in his top.

_"Alister...?"_

_"Downstairs with Winston. Don't worry,"_ Zip replied, grinning slightly. "I'll look after him."

Lara let go, satisfied, and Zip walked softly away. He closed the door quietly behind him and made his way back down to the main hall. Winston was just straightening up, closing the first aid box.

_"Take it slowly,"_ he was saying. "_We'll get you to a hospital tomorrow for a proper check up, but for now it looks fine. Just don't aggrivate it."_

Alister nodded. _"Thanks, Winston,"_ he said.

His voice dripped with tiredness, and he was clearly fighting to keep his eyes open. Zip nodded to Winston as the man passed him before walking over to Alister and looking down at him. Alister blinked back up, his eyes drifting between focused and glazed.

_"What happened?"_ Zip asked hesitantly.

He wasn't sure if he really wanted to know, but if he didn't ask now he might never find out. Lara never spoke of personal matters, and Zip was sure that this particular matter had recently become very personal indeed. Alister slowly raised and lowered one shoulder in a shrug.

_"She came for me. She had Odin's staff... dunno where she found it... she dragged me out of... of wherever I was."_

_"You don't remember?"_

_"Not really."_

Zip had no idea what 'Odin's staff' was, but at least none of Lara's enemies had been involved in ressurecting Alister. For a moment he had been worried that Lara had somehow found Natla and demanded her help. But no, that was impossible. And besides, Lara would never make any kind of deal with that harpie.

"_You and Lara," _Zip said slowly. "_Is there something... well, there?"_

Alister remained silent, and for a moment Zip thought that he wasn't going to answer. Then he spoke up, his voice quiet and halting.

_"I... I think... maybe... when she looks at me I... its just..."_ he shook his head.

_"Great,"_ Zip muttered. _"Thanks for clarifying that for me."_

Alister smiled at his sarcasm, his eyelids drooping once more. Sighing, Zip reached down and gently heaved the other man up to his feet, supporting him once more.

_"Jesus, I'm playing nuremaid tonight."_

_"I can do it myself-"_

Zip snorted. _"As if."_

They slowly made their way up the stairs and into Alister's room. When Croft Manor had been rebuilt, Lara had included it. The possesions that had been saved were dumped in the corner, as if waiting for their owner to return. As if everyone and everything had known he was coming back. Zip sat Alister down on the bed, careful not to jolt his side.

_"You want anything? A drink?"_

Alister shook his head. _"__Thanks, Zip,"_ he mumbled.

Zip shrugged. He moved to the door, and then stopped and turned around again. _"Good to have you back, mate. Things weren't the same when you weren't here."_

Alister smirked. _"Is that a trace of emotion I feel there?"_

Zip scowled. _"Shut up,"_ he muttered.

He shoved his way out of the room, his ears reddening as he heard Alister chuckle behind him.

Lara awoke to soft, glittering sunshine streaming in through the open curtains. She lay in silence for a few moments, enjoying the warmth, before she got up and took a long shower. By the time she returned to her main room, a tray of breakfast had been placed on the coffee table along with the usual small note from Winston - _Welcome home - _and a short list of people who had called for her while she was away. Anaya was listed there, three times in fact. Lara made a mental note to call her later. She wolfed down the food and then made for Alister's room.

Although it was past ten fiffteen, there did not seem to be anyone around. Of course, Zip would either still be snoring or mucking about with some new peice of equiptment in the tech room, and Winston would more than likely have found something to do around the Manor. But still, it seemed eerily silent as she picked her way along the corridors and around the corner to Alister's room. The first thing she noticed was a second tray outside his room, untouched. So he wasn't up yet. She hesitated, but then knocked lightly on the door. She waited for a few moments, and then softly pushed it open.

Alister's room looked very different stripped bare. In the original Manor it had been filled with books and scattered papers, or models and artifacts he had picked up over time or most likely comandeered from some museum. Most of the books were also kidnapped from the Manor's library. She hadn't been able to face putting everything back, or throwing anything out. Therefore, Alister's belongings were now piled in the corner and stacked on the desk. He would probably clear it all up later. Winston had moved the bed back in after the Manor had been rebuilt; it was the only object that looked more or less the same.

Alister was asleep, as she had thought. He was still wearing the clothes from the day before, and was lying on his back with one hand over his side. His mouth hung open slightly. Lara smiled and inched inside, closing the door quietly behind her. She moved silently over to the bed and climbed onto it to kneel beside him. She reached out and gently moved his hand aide, peeling back his shirt to inspect the wound. They would take him to the hospital when he woke up, but for now it looked alright - the redness around the area had vanished and it was no longer bleeding.

_"It's fine."_

Lara started and looked up at Alister. His eyes were open and he was watching her with a small smile. She let go and sat back on her heels.

"_Maybe, but we're still taking you to the hospital. You almost died. Twice."_

_"Once,"_ he corrected. _"The first time I actually did die."_

He gingerly pushed himself up into a sitting position, leaning back against the headboard of the bed. He gestured to the pile of things in the corner.

"You didn't throw anything away."

"I couldn't."

He looked at her. _"Lara... everything you've done for me..."_

_"No," she said, shaking her head. "I did this for myself. I was selfish. I was stupid. I shouldn't have started playing with life and death - that's what Natla does. But I just couldn't bear to let you go, and so I didn't think straight and-"_

Alister reached out and put his finger lightly on her lips, stopping her in mid-sentence. _"I wouldn't have you any other way,"_ he murmured.

She let out a sigh of relief. She shifted over to sit against the headboard beside him, reaching out to take his hand. _"So... what happens now?"_ she asked hesitantly.

It felt so strange to be giving herself over like this, not to be in control. But on the other hand it felt kind of nice too... safe. Alister cocked his head slightly.

_"Well, now,"_ he said slowly_. __"Now... I suppose we just carry on living."_

She smiled and leant over to kiss him on the cheek. _"Yes,"_ she whispered. _"To carry on living is enough for now."_


	9. 5 days later

_**5 days later...**_

Alister stood at the edge of the precipice, shivering. Part of the shivering was caused by being in the Highlands in the middle of winter but most of it was the thought that he was about to abseil down the sheer rock face. He watched Lara descend gracefully, amazed at how confident she was about doing this. This was her job though, he thought to himself as he saw her land at the bottom. She gestured at him.

_"Come on Alister, it's your turn now!"_ She said. He took a deep breath.

**_"Remind me why I am doing this again!"_** He screamed back, taking hold of the ropes. He saw her sigh at the bottom as this was the thirtieth time he had asked this as they had got to this point on the mountain.

"_You need this for your PhD and you need to stop being such a scardy cat! I thought you might worry less about me if you went with me yourself,"_ she said, taking the ropes at her end to guide him. Ah, his PhD, he thought amusedly. After guiding Lara on her last adventure for Excalibur through researching he had become fascinated about that time and what they were searching for fit in perfectly. He sighed and looked down, vertigo engulfing him. He squeezed his eyes shut and called back.

**_"I can't Lara, I'm going to fall, and I know it!"_** He panicked. He felt his feet slip against the rocks, causing an increase in his panic but he stabilised. His breathing became rapid and his heart hammered in his chest. He was going to die today, he knew that.

"Alister, I've got you, just take it slow and you'll be all right," she called, her voice taking on a soothing tone. He nodded to himself; the point of this trip was to be less useless and scared. He could do this. He put his back to the edge and slowly walked towards the edge, taking a deep breath as he felt his heels go over the edge. He pushed back and placed his feet solidly against the rock face and leaned back into his harness. He had done some abseiling in his university days, over a decade ago now, but had done nothing like this. It was mainly on the indoor walls the university had, nothing like this rock face he was currently hanging off. He started to walk down the rock face, his steps becoming more sure the lower he got. Before he knew it he had hit the ground and Lara was helping him detach himself from the harness.

_"Well done, Alister,"_ she said, patting him on the back. _"You're more of a man than Zip."_ They smirked to each other.

**_"Hey, I resent that!"_ **Zip cried on the radio. _**"You know I'd do it better than you any day!"**_ Lara laughed.

_"Then why aren't you here instead of Alister? I'm glad to see you're still awake."_ She said, looking over at Alister.

_"You know that you need my tech support, without me you would never have found this,"_ Zip said, defensively. Both Lara and Alister could imagine the indigent look on his face.

_"Oh, I think Winston could manage,"_ she said. That was very true, he may look like the epitome of the genteel butler but there was a lot more behind the old man than meets the eye. Zip grunted and said nothing.

_"So Lara, the artefact is in the cave just below us?"_ Alister said, looking down the slight incline which led to a very dark cave, a prospect which he was not looking forward to. Lara nodded.

_"Yes, the cave contains the crown of Áedán mac Gabráin," _she said, taking the PDA and reading over the information that she had collated with the help of Alister. Zip was going to be updating the information with the help of Winston as they found more information about the Celtic king and where his crown is likely to be hidden in the cave. _"I hope I won't be disappointed."_ He heard the hard edge to her voice. Ever since she had seen her mother in Avalon, she had been desperate to see her again. She was going to do anything to get to her and after this they would be heading to Wales to another point where according to legend it was possible to get to Avalon. Another problem they were encountering was Amanda. Ever since Lara had stopped her, Amanda had been more determined to make her own way to Avalon by any means possible. Even during their journey they had encountered some of Amanda's men but had managed to evade them. Lara checked her equipment once more before going to the edge of the incline before gesturing to Alister to go next to her. He nervously approached, looking at the loose rocks with a worried expression.

_"Take my hand,"_ Lara said, taking his hand. _"Hold on tight and you will be fine."_ Alister sighed and adjusted his rucksack before standing next to her. _"Are you ready?"_

_"As I'll ever be,"_ he said and Lara pulled on his hand and then they were sliding down to the cave. He stumbled as they hit the ground, catching himself before he could fall face first into the dirt. Lara was grinning as he dusted himself off.

_"That was exhilarating wasn't it?"_ She sounded breathless and looked beautiful with her flushed skin and bright eyes. Alister said nothing and rechecked his backpack before taking out his torch.

_"I suppose we're going to have to go in aren't we?"_ Alister said, shining his torch into the cave, which looked daunting.

_"Oh yes, Alister,"_ Lara was grinning broadly. She was obviously excited about the prospect of going into the darkness of the cave. _"Come on, we've not got all day!"_ She walked forward, turning on her light. _"Zip have you got the location of the crown?"_

_"Yeah, it's right in the centre of the cave. There's a ravine to traverse and lake nearby,"_ Zip said. Alister groaned. _"Cheer up Alister! It could be worse!"_

_"How could it be worse?"_ Alister said, the scepticism filling his voice.

_"There are no traps,"_ Zip said. "_You've just got to go straight ahead until you reach the edge of the ravine before scaling that and you're right by the lake. There should be some kind of symbols where the crown is hidden, a curse if the reading me and Winston had done is right." _Alister's face drained of blood.

_"__Lara, I'm not sure if I want to do this,"_ Alister said, shuffling away from the cave entrance. Lara grabbed him.

_"I need you,"_ she said. _"You have studied runes more than I have; this is your area of expertise." Wow, he thought, she needs me."Besides, you wouldn't want Zip to be crowing about this, would you?"_

_"You're right,"_ he said, sighing softly as she let go of his arm. They both walked into the cave, both of their hearts racing. Lara was tense and watching around her for anything unusual with Alister walking close behind her, wary of his surroundings.

They got to the ravine with no problems but Lara suddenly tensed and pushed him behind a rock, covering him with her body. Alister was very aware of her breasts against his chest and her lips being so close to his, their breaths were mingling. If it wasn't for the fear and the seriousness of the situation, he would have kissed her. Lara's actions were proved correct when gun fire came from where they had just jumped from. Lara jumped up and shot from behind the rock and managed to get one of the men before going back behind the rock to reload.

_"Damn,"_ Lara said_. "Amanda's men have found the cave."_ She jumped back out and fired some more shots. Soon it went silent. Alister panicked because he thought that Lara...he couldn't even finish that thought.

_"Lara?"_ He called and peered around the rock, frightened at what he might find. He found Lara standing over the bodies of the two men who had attacked them.

_"Alister, I'm fine but I can't say the same for them however,"_ she said, putting the guns in her holsters.

"_Lara, Alister, you've got to get moving. More of Amanda's men are coming,"_ Zip said in their earpieces. _"You just need to get down the ravine and it should be to the left once you're down there."_ Lara nodded and got her climbing equipment out.

"_Thanks Zip,"_ Lara said before assisting Alister in getting his sorted. Once the pair of them were kitted up, they approached the edge of the ravine and attached their ropes to the rocks, making sure they were solid. Lara went to the edge first and took a deep breath before beginning her journey down. The ravine was about a hundred foot down, not too bad considering the heights she dealt with but for the inexperienced Alister, it was frightening despite his earlier attempt. Lara got down quickly and called up to Alister for him to start. Alister began to slowly descend but footsteps came from above him, followed by gun fire.

_**"Quickly, Alister!"**_ Lara yelled, her voice echoing around the cave. Alister tried to increase his pace but kept slipping against the rocks, as his panic set in. Unfortunately, one the bullets managed to catch his shoulder, causing a great deal of pain. He let go of the rope with his injured hand and began to slide down quickly. Lara grabbed his ropes and made a move to catch him. Once he was down and out of the gun fire, she began to shoot at the men who were beginning their own descent. She managed to get one of the men whose body hung from the rope. The other managed to evade her fire and make it to the ground. This just made her job easier as she managed to kick his gun out of his hand before smacking it around his head, knocking him out cold. She considered putting a bullet through his head but decided against it, she hated to kill when it was unnecessary despite her anger at hurting one of her best friends. She went over to Alister who was clutching at his shoulder, where she saw the blood staining through his coat, he was bleeding pretty badly. She began to worry; she would not be able to forgive herself if anything had happened to him. She got out a first aid kit and got him topless and tended to his wounds. Her eyes then turned to his torso and she unconsciously licked her lips. For such a geeky bloke he was surprisingly well toned despite his paleness. He hissed as she touched the wound to clean and cover it.

_"Sorry, you've got to only put up with this for a little longer,"_ she said as she covered it. She smiled as she helped him with his clothes. _"Zip, Alister's been hit. Can you make sure the helicopter can get over to us? Amanda's going to regret this."_

"_Is he okay?"_ Zip asked, concern for his friend whom he cared for despite their sparring.

_"I'm fine, it just hurts,"_ Alister said, grimacing slightly. Lara helped him get up and they went over to the indent in the cave where the crown was supposed to be. Alister read the runes over and told Lara what it meant. _"The runes say that any person who takes the crown will cause a curse to be put upon them, more or less."_ He scoffed but Lara raised an eyebrow.

_"It's a risk we're going to have to take aren't we?"_ She said whilst taking the key that they had stolen from a museum in Yorkshire, the museum had no idea what it was. The key was turned and she pulled the stone from the rest of the cliff face, revealing an alcove with an unremarkable gold crown with a smattering of precious stones within it. Alister looked decidedly unimpressed.

_"Is this it?"_ He asked, looking the crown over and taking it with his uninjured hand. Lara looked at him disapprovingly.

_"Alister, I'm surprised at you. I thought you would have realised by now that looks can be deceiving,"_ She said, taking the crown back from him and putting it in her backpack. "We better get out of here, you need proper medical care and more of Amanda's men are most likely on their way here." Alister and Lara walked back together and she helped him with his kit before making sure she had everything. _**"**__Look__**,**__ can you hold the rock okay__**?"**_

_"I think I'll be okay,"_ he said and tried to grab onto the rock but winced as he put his weight upon it.

_"Alister, you're not okay," _Lara said and got her own equipment on and attached it to Alister. _"Hold on to me and put your feet on the rock._ He complied and they made slow progress up the ravine. Once they had made it up the ravine, they quickly detached themselves before getting out of the cave as fast as possible. She threw a hooked rope to the top of the slope and make sure it was caught before tying Alister to it and attaching herself to it. She led them up the slippery slope and eventually got away from the cave. At the top, they encountered some more of Amanda's men, who Lara dispatched quickly, venting her anger into the action. She couldn't believe that she had put him into such danger, but then she had underestimated Amanda's desperation in her quest for Avalon. She watched as Alister collapsed from the effort and the blood loss he had suffered. Lara felt scared for him; she really didn't want to lose him.

_"Zip, can you give me an idea of how long the helicopter is going to be? Alister has passed out and he needs to get to a hospital soon,"_ she said, the worry evident in her voice.

"_It's going to be a couple of minutes according to the tracker I've got," _he said. Lara sighed and sat down next to Alister and held him to her, and one of her hands on one of her pistols.

Over the couple of years that they had known each other, she had developed some inexplicable feelings for him. When they first met they had both been in a library in Oxford, where she was studying for a job she had been asked to do by an American museum and he had been studying the same subject for his PhD. They had been getting the same book and got into a little argument about it. In the end his chivalry won out but his wit and intelligence had intrigued her so she left him her number and made an offer to be her personal researcher. He did not seem keen until he realised who she was and who her father was. After that he had practically lived in her house and helped with her research. Despite his annoying worrying and smart arse-ness, he had endeared himself to her with her genuine care for her wellbeing and their interesting discussions. The closest thing had to any sort of non-platonic feeling with a guy was Kurtis Trent and that didn't end well exactly. She sighed as she stroked his hair gently, noticing how young he looked with his eyes closed. She wasn't going to let him die, she had lost far too many people in her life and finally having some friends after many years alone was a relief and a joy. It was something that she didn't want to lose.

Lara gently laid Alister down as she heard the approaching helicopter and got up, waving her arms to alert the helicopter to their position. A rope with a clip to attach to her belt was lowered and she clipped Alister to it before grabbing it, using her body to support him as they were lifted into the helicopter. The pilot radioed the nearest hospital in Inverness to tell them that they were coming whilst Lara laid Alister down and watched him closely, praying silently that he would be okay.

Alister woke up a few hours later, slightly disoriented. He seemed to have dreamt that he had just gone an adventure with Lara and been shot. When he fully awoke and took in his surroundings and the condition of his shoulder he realised that it had not been a dream. He glanced to his right and saw Lara asleep in the chair next to his bed. She had waited for him, which surprised him a little bit because he thought she'd be off trying to get to Avalon or simply chasing Amanda and her men. He sat up a little bit, struggling against all the drips that had been put in his arm and his movement made Lara stir.

_"Alister, I see you're awake. Are you okay?" _Lara asked. Alister smiled and nodded. _"Good, I was worried that we had lost you there." _Lara laughed and Alister could not help but join in but soon stopped as it aggravated his shoulder injury.

_"Why are you here, Lara?"_ Alister asked once the laughter died down. It was really unlike her wait like this, least of all for him. _"I just needed to make sure you were alright,"_ she said, earnestly. Alister smiled, his face colouring a little bit.

_"Thank you,"_ he said. She kissed him on the cheek, allowing her lips to linger upon his cheek, surprising both of them.

_"I couldn't just leave you,"_ she said. _"I thought you could have died and I really could not have lived with myself if that had happened."_ She took his hand and held it for hours until the nurse told her to go home. When she was about to go she kissed him on the lips, lingeringly, promising so much when they got back.

_"I love you, Lara,"_ Alister said, as she turned her back to him to leave.

_"I know,"_ she replied, brushing it off with a shrug, attributing it to his drugged state.

Alister was released the next day and was picked up by Winston in the helicopter, leaving him disappointed. The ride was silent and gave him a lot of time to think about things. What did all this mean? She kissed him but yet did not return. He sighed, his head fuzzy from all the drugs that had been pumped into him during his brief stay in hospital. He knew that as soon as he recovered that things would be back to normal and that their kiss and the unspoken promise would be forgotten. He closed his eyes and leaned against the seat, the noise of the helicopter blocking his thoughts out, a relief for his overactive mind.

Arriving at Croft Manor, Alister was greeted by a visibly relieved Zip. That did not stop him from slapping Alister's injured shoulder, causing Alister's smile to turn to a grimace.

_"Hey, glad to have you back, buddy,"_ Zip said before leading Alister back inside to the chairs near the fire and going back to the computers. _"I'd chat more but I'm guiding Lara to the Avalon access point in Wales."_ Both men nodded, knowing how important this was to Lara. Alister had lost his parents years ago and could understand Lara's desire to see her mother and bring her back. They were concerned for their employer and friend because they did not know what she would do if it went wrong. Zip kept guiding her whilst Alister sat in his chair, lightly snoozing. After a couple of hours, Alister got up and went to the library to see if there was anything he could do to help and he simply wanted to get away from the commentary of events which was causing him a great deal of worry towards the woman he cared so much for.

He poured through books although he knew it would not help her for hours to simply take his mind off what Lara was going through. He absorbed himself in the tales of the Scottish kings and Welsh druids, just anything that might give him a clue to getting to Avalon and how Lara might rescue her mother. It was in vain as the books he had were almost useless on the subject and just gave him more information for his PhD rather than anything useful.

He became so focused on his reading that he almost missed the door opening and the entrance of a battered and bruised Lara. Alister got up and saw the lost expression on her face.

_"Lara, are you alright?"_ He asked, watching her carefully. Her face crumbled and tears fell from her eyes as her body began to collapse. Alister quickly caught her and brought her into his arms, ignoring the pain in his shoulder. He sat down in one of the chairs and cradled her. He stroked her face as she cried her heart out and waited for her to begin speaking. Soon her sobs began to subside and she began to speak.

_"I-I-I've been so s-s-selfish,"_ she said, her voice on the verge of breaking. "_My mother was happy in Avalon and I was going to take that away from her."_ He soothed her by stroking her cheek and gently kissing her forehead.

_"No one could blame you for wanting her back,"_ he said, resting his cheek on her forehead_. __"I would do anything to get my parents back but I know that I can't."_ Lara looked up at him; her eyes wide with tears making her look so young.

_"I put you in danger through for my own selfishness,"_ she sobbed. "_I didn't even stay to make sure you got home all right."_ Alister shook his head and tightened his hold on her.

_"You had to do this or you would never have found out that your mother was okay,"_he said, wiping some of the stray tears from her cheeks_. "And I would not have missed yesterday for the world, as terrifying as it was."_

_"Thank you,"_ she whispered and leant up, pressing her lips to his. He closed his eyes briefly but pulled back.

_"Lara, you're not in your right mind,"_ he said as he felt the tears she had left on his cheeks_. __"Don't do this because I won't be able to stop myself once I start. I love you Lara so much it hurts."_ Her face fell slightly.

_"I didn't know,"_ she said, an expression of remorse on her face. She rested her face against his chest, her mind going over the events of the day. It was a traumatic day for her and her mind was reeling trying to comprehend what had happened. She felt comforted by Alister's arms around her and the smell of his aftershave.

_"Let's get you cleaned up,"_ Alister said, noticing that she was relaxing and how dirty she was. She looked up and nodded. This was extremely unlike her but the day had been a shock to her so it was all she could do and he relished the chance to look after her instead of it being the other way around. He helped her up and they walked to her bedroom with its en suite shower. He helped her undress before turning on the shower and making sure it was hot enough before leading her towards it and helping her in. _"Are you okay to do this on her own?"_ He asked, trying not to look at her wet, naked body. She nodded so he left her to wash whilst he went to found her some clothes. He found some silk pajamas and matching underwear in her drawers and then went to see if there was a first aid kit anywhere so he could treat some of the cuts and bruises she had sustained in her quest for Avalon.

Once he had gotten everything together he went back into the bathroom and picked up a fluffy warm towel and bathrobe to help her dry. He was distressed to see her sitting the corner of the shower, her shoulders shaking as she cried her heart out once more. He mentally kicked himself; he should not have left her when she was in such a fragile state. He took his top off, wincing slightly as he moved his shoulder out of the sleeve and went over to her, getting soaked in the shower, his glasses steaming up. He took those off and put them to the side before helping the sobbing woman up.

_"Shh, it will get better, I promise,"_ he said as he wrapped her in a towel and led her out of the shower room and to her bed. He sat her down and began to dry her off.

_"You didn't need to do this,"_ she said, her eyes puffy and her voice weak. He smiled slightly and looked her in the eyes.

_"I want to,"_ he said before resuming his careful drying of her before putting the underwear onto her. He then got out the first aid kit and treated her wounds with such a gentle touch; it made her want to cry. He was treating her like she was made of porcelain; no one ever did that because of her adventuring and general self sufficiency. She sighed as his hands gently tended to the wounds on her legs; his tending to her was making her feel better inside and out. She could feel how much he cared through this. When he had finished he kissed her forehead and helped her into her pajamas.

_"You sleep now,"_ Alister said, reluctantly getting ready to leave her to get some needed rest. _"You'll feel a little better in the morning."_ He wasn't going to lie to her because he could sense the extreme amount of pain she was in emotionally. Those wounds would not be so easy to treat.

_"Please stay,"_ Lara said in a small voice. He couldn't leave her now she had asked him to stay so he nodded and helped her into bed before kicking off his shoes and getting in himself. She snuggled into him and he put his arms around her. She fell asleep quickly and he stayed awake watching her until sleep engulfed him as well, dreams haunted by her.

Alister was woken up by knock on the door and was immediately aware of the woman still asleep next to him and his surroundings. He gently detached himself from her before answering the door. It was Winston with a tray of breakfast things and he looked the tiniest bit surprised to find Alister there.

_"Some breakfast for Lady Croft,"_ Winston said and handed him the tray. Alister nodded.

_"Thank you, Winston,"_ he said. _"She is still asleep so would it possible for you to bring something up for her a little bit later?"_ Winston nodded.

_"Yes, Mister Fletcher,"_ he said and made his elegant retreat back towards the main part of the house. Alister went back to the bed where Lara was still asleep, looking beautiful because she seemed so relaxed. He sipped the tea that was on the tray and munched on the toast that was there as he watched her, careful not to get crumbs anywhere. She began to stir so Alister put down the tray and waited for her to wake up.

_"Alister?"_ Lara asked as she opened her eyes, being aware of the lack of a person next to her.

_"Good morning,"_ he said. _"Can I get you anything?"_ Lara shook her head. Her eyes went to the wound on his shoulder and noticed his wince when he tried to move it.

"_Thank you, Alister_," she said. _"For the last couple of days you've been amazing. I really needed you."_ Alister smiled and reddened a little. He shrugged.

_"It was nothing,"_ he said. Lara raised an eyebrow.

_"I wouldn't say taking a bullet was nothing,"_ she said, grinning. Alister grinned back, relieved that her sense of humour hadn't been damaged by the events of the last couple of days. She patted the bed to encourage him to sit with her. "_I realised that I have feelings for you over the last couple of days. Actually it's been longer but I've just been confronted with them."_ Alister's mouth hung open. _"Before you say I'm not in my right mind, I do know what I'm saying. It's going to take time for me to fully recover from it and I'm going to need your support but I would like to take things slowly."_ Alister nodded.

_"I didn't know how you felt about me and I'm pleased and would not expect you rush into anything, especially what has happened to you,"_ Alister said and took her hand. _"Of course I'm going to support you; I'd hate myself if I didn't."_ He gently kissed her cheek. _"Is there anything I can get you?"_ She nodded meekly.

_"I'm famished,"_ she said. Alister nodded and got up.

_"I'll just get Winston to bring something up,"_ he said before opening the door and exiting.

_"Don't be too long!"_ Lara called, causing Alister to smile.

A few weeks after the events related to Avalon, Lara slowly recovered from her guilt with help from Alister. They were sitting in the grounds on a glorious spring day, taking the time to enjoy the brief respite from the research they were doing for her next quest. They were sipping tea on a blanket, Lara leaning against Alister's chest, discussing their research.

_"According to the findings the sword of Babylon was buried somewhere in Israel,"_Alister said. Lara shifted against him.

_"So I'm going to Israel then?"_ She said smiling, she loved to travel. He nodded.

_"Do be careful,"_ he said, constantly worried about her, more so now. She grinned and kissed him.

_"You worry about me too much," _she said. He shrugged.

_"I can't help it with the life you lead,"_ he said. Lara rolled her eyes.

_"If you came with me then you would worry less,"_ she said, resting her head on his shoulder. Alister laughed.

_"__The last time I went I got shot," he said. "I think that travelling with you is too dangerous, as thrilling as it is."_ Lara looked up and pouted.

_"Come on, you know you loved it,"_ she said. Alister sighed, he couldn't resist her. He nodded.

_"Fine, as long as I get something out of it,"_he said suggestively. Lara raised a mischievous eyebrow.

"_Like what?" _She said and was kissed thoroughly by Alister.

_"Oh I can think of a few things,"_ he said before leading her back to the house to show her.

_The next day. . . Alister and Lara had a little fight which led to Alister leaving for London. Find out what happens next._


	10. Lara's Dream

_Lara's Dream. . ._

_"W-Where am I. Is anyone there?" She looked around the dark filled room as she noticed a dark window with a dark woman standing looking outside it as she was crying. She knew it couldn't be her mother but she had to find out."Hello. - She spoke silently as she stood right behind the figure as she reached out her hand and rested it upon her shoulder. The woman turned around and she had a very beautiful face she has ever seen. Almost like her mother's Amelia. But her clothing was totally different. It was like she was getting ready for a funeral. She looked like a black widow and that is what she was. She wore a black hat that had a piece of dark soft fabric that fell over her face and black velvet gloves covering her hands as she had on a black dress holding a white handkerchief. Lara couldn't believe she looked exactly like her mother. As the cold breeze blew in from her window suddenly..._

Woke up and found herself lying in her father's thinking chair as the fireplace crackled oh so softly in the dark room. She tried to go back to sleep but the storm wouldn't let her even try to close her weary eyes. So she got off the chair carefully and headed for the kitchen but before she could- there was a gentle-like weak knock at the door. _"Huh-._ She sighed wearingly as she walked slowly towards the door.

She couldn't believe who she suddenly met eyes with. It was Alister and he was holding himself up by keeping his hands up against the sides of the door way. He was all soak and wet from the rain and his hand was all torn up without his glasses on his face. _"A-A-Alister is th-that you_. - She began to feel a tear hit her star filled eyes. He didn't say anything but smiled at her as he took his hands off the sides of the doorway and fell into her arms. _"Lara I missed you so very much. I'm sorry I wouldn't come back and I'm sorry I left you guys and I'm s- _He paused as he felt her hand grab his and she pulled him inside as she shut the door quietly. - - Once they got inside the lights and everything were on and Zip, and Winston were awake. Zip gasped and ran up to Alister not even caring if he hugged him too hard that he broke him. He was just so happy to see him again.

_"Master Alister your back, but what happened to your hand?"_ Winston spoke as his smile turned into a frown moving his eyes down his hand.

Zip looked at him and grabbed his wounded hand. _"Hey man. Everything is alright now that you are back at home." _The American smiled as he hugged him one last time but this time it was a gentle caring hug. Alister couldn't help but hug him back. _"Th-thank you Zip."_ He coughed as he groaned feeling pain take over his throat. Zip and Lara gently laid Alister down on the couch, while Winston looked at them and said, _"I'll get the First aid kit."_ Lara spoke gently filling Alister's ears with more passionate love for her. He smiled at her and reached for her face. When she realized he was reaching for her face she grabbed his hand and lye it up against her warm soft cheek. _"Lara may I kiss you?"_ He smiled as he blushed deeply making Lara choke on his words.

His facial expression once was a grin but just like that turned into a frown. He thought that Lara would never like him ever again. But she still did but it was more than just a best friend relationship. _"Yes you may-_ She whispered as she leaned down towards his neck and began to kiss his lips. It's a good thing Winston or Zip weren't here to see this. But as soon as they each got back that is when she split apart from the British man's lips. Winston walked in with the First aid kit in his hands. _"Well Mr. Fletcher may I see that hand of yours please."_ The older man spoke as Alister laid himself up with his back against the couch and took out his hand for the gray headed man.

"_What did you do Master Alister.?"_ He began as he grabbed his hand and reached down in the first aid kit and pulled out some alcohol with some cotton balls and patted them on the top of the bottle as he pressed the piece of cotton on his wound hearing an unpleasant hiss come from his lips. But he didn't respond.

After everyone was back in bed, Lara got out of bed and walked silently wearing her white angel-like night gown as the back hanged down dragging slowly across the floor with every step she took walking into Alister's bedroom where she found it dark and peaceful. A little breezy but nice. The things she did like to hear was Alister breathing quietly as he began to stir as the brunette walked on ahead towards the end of his bed.

_"L-Lara what's wrong?"_He spoke to her as he tried to find a new pair of glasses somewhere but couldn't. _"Is this better?"_ She smiled as she was on her hands and knees lying up above his body putting a new pair of glasses on his face.

He nodded his head and smiled back at her but that changed quickly. "_Um Lara . . . the only thing that I'm wearing is"_- he was stopped by her as she took the blanket off him and noticed he was wearing a pair of brown silk boxers. _"It's alright."_ She scooted closer to his lips as he began to breathe deeply feeling her body slip between his thighs. At that time she leaned towards his neck and kissed up and down feeling the little bristles of where the rest of his gotee used to be brushed against her lips as she made it up his chin and stroked his lips and jaw line taking in some of his sweet after shave scent. That made her go crazy. Suddenly she moved her hands down his chin passed his collar bone and up against his pale chest. He closed his eyes gently and moaned just once before he opened them again and found his lips against hers. Running his long fingers down her spine.

"_Alister huh_- She whispered against his neck once more as she watched as his Adam's apple moved as he swallowed. Lady croft stroked it then kissed it as she felt him move his fingers up and down her back throwing his head back so she could do what she wants. _"Oh Lara"..._ He moaned as he closed his eyes tight shut feeling her mouth around his Adam's apple.

She continued to stroke his chest feeling himself tighten from her soft touch. He raised his head back up facing her angelic face as he pulled her closer feeling her breasts push against his bare chest as she kissed him another time. She gasped for some air as she took her lips from his and stared deeply in his beautiful blue eyes. _"I'm so tired_- She laid her head down on his chest and closed her eyes as she felt his stomach move every time he took a breath.

Alister looked down her and ran his fingers down her spine once again as he caught his eyes on her scars that slashed across her right arm. He tried to calm himself down. But his fear of her cutting her arms was scaring him and going out of control. _"Lara what did-_ but he didn't want to finish his sentence. Lara raised her head up gently making her lips hit his again. She closed her eyes and moved her hand off his chest and on his hand. Where she stroked between each of his fingers brushing up against a ring that was around his pinky finger.

"_What, you still have this Alister?"_ She gasped as she looked at his dark ring. He smiled and found her smiling back. _"Yes I do and I will always have it with me."_ The English man chuckled as she put her hand in his.

At that moment he felt like the luckiest man ever. He had the girl of his dreams right beside him holding his hand and her kisses just amazed him ever so much. _"Lara I - I love you."_ He blurted out as he felt her hand squeeze his gently. "_Me too_ Alister." she smiled at him wrapping her arms around his neck as she pulled him down on top of her. He was pretty heavy. Heavier than she will ever be.

"_Kiss me."_ She whispered against his ear bringing a chill down his spine. He moved his hand out from behind her back and into her long brown hair obeying her command. _"Yes Ms. Croft."_ Alister leaned in and kissed him passionately.

When Lara got home the next day she walked in soak and wet from the thunderstorm that just started. _"Lara you okay?"_ Zip spoke as he ran out of the glassed computer room and up to Lara he went grabbing a towel. _"It's s-so cold_." She shivered as Zip walked behind her and wrapped the towel around her shivering cold wet body_. "Just sit down."_ He spoke as he walked her over to the couch and sat her down sitting next to her. "_How is Alister?"_ He asked as he ran his fingers threw his dark hair. She unwrapped the towel from her body and tried to dry her hair. _"Um he's okay."_ _"Well Winston and I are going to the store." _Zip smiled as they both walked out into the rain closing the door tight and yes they do have a vehicle.

Just then she heard a big pounding on the door. She opened it and saw Alister standing in the doorway looking all better than he did before. _"Alister."_ She smiled as she jumped at him and wrapped her arms around his neck. _"I can't believe it you're finally here."_ She spoke as she began blushing making him blush too. _"Yes but I'm all wet."_ He chuckled as he shut the door. _"Go upstairs and change you silly."_ She giggled as she walked back into the living room.

_Allister's Room_

_"Shit. This is bloody ridiculous."_ Allister cursed to himself as he threw his old wet clothes in the hamper and picked out another suit. But one that he didn't really like but it was the only one left that was clean. _"Well I guess I have to wear this hideous thing."_ The dark headed man sighed as he began dressing himself. But before he was even finished getting changed Lara accidently walked in without remembering he was changing. _**"Lara!"**_ Allister shouted as he began blushing quickly putting his bottoms on then his pants. _"W-what are you doing in here?"_He began to stutter as he looked at her red face. _"Um did she see me? This is so embarrassin__g."_He spoke to himself as he looked down at his feet. But Lara didn't care she was just amazed at how cute his body looked like with nothing covering it. Well she didn't actually see everything but just about.

_"Alister it's alright I'm not going to laugh at you. You have nothing to be ashamed of."_ She smiled caring and gently as she walked up to him and stroked his cheek. Watching her smile made him feel okay. Much okay. But that doesn't mean he's going to become a stripper and undress in front of her.

He stood there watching Lara's eyes move slowly glancing at his cute form and bare chest. _"Alister have you ever made love with somebody before?"_ The brunette asked as she looked into his eyes. But she thought that was too personal. Yes he has and a few well maybe more than a few times but he was too shy to tell Lara. Lara looked at him then the floor and began to blush fiercely. "_It's okay you don't have to tell me. I'll tell you how many people I've been really close with."_ She smiled once more as she carefully grabbed his hand and walked him over to the bed sitting him down as she did too. _"I have done it with ten men and each three times."_ She spoke as she blushed very deeply. _"Now can you tell me about your love life?"_ Lara smiled as she held onto his hand_. __"Well okay. I have done more than that. It's just too bloody much."_

He blushed feeling embarrassed. Very embarrassed. _"Alister stop being so shy."_ She spoke again as she gave him a gentle caring smile. Lara brushed her hair back kicked off her boots and scooted up to the beginning of the bed and laid her back down on the pillow as she pulled Alister up on top of her. As he lying on top of her feeling her breasts push against his bare chest and his hand that was lying on the bed right beside her went into her brown beautiful hair. Staring deeply into her eyes made him feel stunned. She was very beautiful and had the face of an angel.

Lara is the only girl that he loves more than anything in the world and he does like working for her. He would do almost everything she told him to do. As they kept on staring down each other's bodies Lara slowly raised her head and gently kissed Alister as she pulled him down harder on her hearing a deep moan escape his lips. _"Alister -_ She whispered against his neck bringing a chill down his spine.

He glanced at her face and lips then gave her another kiss. During the kiss his hand moved from her hair to her stomach and began to slowly and nervously stroke her stomach all the way up her top until he accidently brushed over her breasts. That made him very nervous and gave him a good feeling but if she didn't want him to do that again he won't. _"Allister why are you always so nervous when your around Me.?" _

Lady Croft spoke kindly as she wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him down until he couldn't go down any further. _"Lara let's not talk about that now please."_ He began blushing as she stroked his soft pale skin with her delicate fingers going up and down to his lips then back up to his forehead. Lara didn't care when he touched her chest it just made her jump a little by the feel of his hand against her breasts.

Lara looked down at his member and tried to yank at his pants but they were stuck on by a black belt that was covering his cleavage. Alister moved around a couple times to get himself in the right position but it still didn't feel right to him. One because his belt was rubbing against his "member" and two because he was so close so very close to his dream girl, Lara wanted to show Alister that she wanted to continue so she slowly grabbed one of her sleeves and pulled it down showing nothing but her shoulder then she pulled the other down and that showed her other shoulder her bra and some cleavage. The dark headed man gulped and then slowly and gently kissed Lara but this time Lara had a surprise for him. She smiled at his face slipped her tongue in slowly then shut her eyes slowly holding onto the belt that was still attached to his dark pants. That filled Alister's mind full of bad things. Bad in a good way. If you know what I mean.

Then Lara continued to strip herself down in front of him. Alister didn't want to let go of her lips so he grabbed onto her shorts slowly pulled them down still keeping his lips on Lara's and then he saw a pair of black panties covering her bottom. Alister loved what she was doing to him. He had to admit he did like it when Lara did all these bad and naughty things to him even though he's not the type who likes people sticking their tongues in his mouth or anything like that.

_"Allister I-_ The brunette whispered softly and kissed him again. As Lara took her lips off his she ran her fingers threw his hair and pushed him down onto her so hard it made a moan pass her lips. Alister started feeling a little bit nervous when she brushed her knees between his thighs and squeezed his back tight kissing his neck. _"Let me get this out of your way Alister."_ She smiled as she grabbed onto his belt and unbuckled it as she threw it to the ground pulling his pants down just a little so that it showed the waist band of his brown and black stripped boxers.

Then she looked at his face and gazed in to his eyes. Lara took her index finger and traced the lining of his glasses then slowly and gently took them off his face setting them on the table that sat right beside the bed. She kissed him again and felt him tremble as she pulled his pants down further. While doing that she finally got them pulled all the way down and he kicked them off once they fell to his feet. Alister then turned his face to the clock and noticed that it was **12:34,** in the afternoon. But he wanted to continue with his time with her.

He was still a little nervous but not as much as he was before. Then as he looked back at her she wrapped her legs around his waist pulling him into another lovely kiss. _"I love you Alister."_ She smiled as she put her fingers on the waist band of his bottoms yanking them down just a little hearing him breathe deeply as he had his hand on her panties. She was very cute. Her form her shape and her face was the thing that was the most beautiful thing he's ever seen.


End file.
